Game apparatus.



J. GRAVES.

GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9. 190B.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

J. GRAVES.

GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9. 1908.

91 2,953 Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

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UNITED STATES PATET FEIQE.

JOHN GRAVES, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO AUTOMATIC BOWLING ALLEY COMPANY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

GAME APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

Original application filed. February 29, 1908, Serial No. 418,490. Divided and. this application filed July 9, 1908.

' Serial No. 442,658.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN Gnsvns, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention herein particularly set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in claims was originally disclosed in my application Serial N 0. 418,490, filed February 29, 1908, of which this application is a division, and said invention 1as especial reference to simple, economical pin-setting mechanism in a bowling-game apparatus, and to automatic cush oning of the descent of a platform that supports weights in connection with flexible hangers attached to the bowling-pins.

Figure 1 of the drawings represents a vertical longitudinal central section view of a fragment of the apparatus, and F g. 1, a similar view of a continuation of said apparatus, certain of the parts in this illustration being in elevation and some of the same partly broken away.

Referring by letter to the drawings, D, E, represent to sections of a box-like casing.

The top section E is a roll-way preferably inclined upward from the approach end of the casing, and the top section D is approximately horizontal below the adjacent end of said rollway, it being designed as a pinstand and bottom of a pit from which balls bowled on said roll-way find their escape into a suitably arranged ball return not shown.

The bowling-pins H are referably bulbous at their lower ends, and w en in vertical position on the stand, the lower bulb portion of each is below the roll-way so that the appearance of the set pins from the approach end of said roll-way is that of ordinary bowling-pins set on an ordinary bowling-alley. Attached to the lower end of each pin is a flexible hanger b that extends through an aperture in the pin-stand, and this hanger is .50 attached to one of a series of weights 0, by

which said pin is automatically set.

Underlying the weights is a platform I attached at each side to long arms of bellcrank levers J that are suitably fulcrumed in connection with brackets d fastened to framing of the casing aforesaid inside the same. The connection of the bell-crank levers in pairs with the sides of the platform one ahead of the other is such that said platform is always on a horizontal plane regardless of its movement from time to time in a vertical direction its adjustments being effected without cramp. The, other, short arms of the levers J in each pair are connected in pairs, by links, only one of these links being shown at K in Fig. 1, and a yoke L connecting the links is attached midway of its ends to a rod M that is in turn connected to a shank N of a iston O in a cylinder 1? fast within an annu ar flange 0 of a casting Q suitably mounted in the casing aforesaid. The flanged portion of the casting is one of the heads of the cylinder, and said casting is provided with guides for the rod ll of the piston.

A rock-shaft U is arranged in bearings with which the inner framing of the casing and the casting Q aforesaid are provided. A treadle-lever V is attached to an end of the shaft and extends beyond the approach-end of the casing suitable clearance being had for the play of the lever. Fast on the shaft is a crank W herein shown as having a longitudinal slot engaged by a lateral lug a of a collar 15 of the aforesaid piston-rod.

The approach-end of the casing is provided with a spring-controlled latch X engageable with a lateral lug y of the lever V to hold said lever in depressed position, the platform I and weights 0 being then elevated.

The cylinder P is vented on one side of the piston 0 through that portion of the casting Q that forms a head of said cylinder. That portion of the cylinder on the other side of the piston is vented through an angular passage z in the piston-shank N the disposition of this passage being such that air-cushion resistance is established in the aforesaid cylinder to prevent sudden drop of the plat form I and 1erk of the pin-weights c on their hangers. The lever V being released there is cushioned descent of the platform I and weights 0, the result being a draw on the hangers b to automatically reset any and all of the pins II that may have fallen, after which said lever is again depressed to elevate said platform and weights to the position herein shown and thereby slack the weight hangers so that said pins may have an opportunity to fall as a result of a bowling operation. Tne above described operations of the lever V are repeated for each frame of a bowling-game.

I claim:

1. A bowling-game apparatus comprising the combination of a pin-stand, pins provided with flexible hangers extending through the stand, weights in connection witii the hangers, a platform for the weights, bell-crank levers having arms thereof in connection with the platform, links connecting other arms of the levers in pairs, a yoke connecting the links, a cylinder having a venthead, a piston in the cylinder having a ventshank reciprocative through the other head of same and connected to said yoke, a pistonrod reciprocative through the vent-Lead of said cylinder, and means for actuating the piston-rod against resistance of the platform and weights.

2. A bowling-game apparatus comprising the combination of a pin-stand, pins provided with flexible hangers extending through the stand, weights in connection with the hangers, a platform for the weights, lever-mechanism for raising and lowering the platform, a cylinder having a vent-head, a piston in the cylinder having a vent-shank reciprocative through the other head of same and connected to said lever-mechanism a piston-rod reciprocative through the venthead of said cylinder, and means for actuating the piston-rod to lift said platform and weights.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand at Milwaukee in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN GRAVES.

Witnesses:

R0131. S. FISCHER, M. D. WALDHEIM. 

